I'm realizing that blogging takes a lot of dedication (yeah shocker, I know.) I've fallen a bit behind but here's a quick recap of my two weeks traveling through Sydney, Byron Bay, Surfers Paradise, & Brisbane. 

Sydney

After Melbourne, I stayed in Sydney. I allotted four whole days to experience the city. Throughout my travels, I have heard differing opinions on Sydney. My personal one is, you can live a happy life without going there. Here’s a brief overview of what I did while there.
The first day I was tired from the bus so I didn’t do much. I got lunch and drank a Yak beer. It’s an Australia beer that I really like and would suggest for everyone to try. At night I walked to Darling Harbor. When in season Darling Harbour will have fireworks every Saturday. There were no fireworks when I was there but it's still a nice place to people watch and gaze at the city all lit up.

The second day I woke up earlier and headed to the Blue Mountains. I recommend trying to go on Sunday since the public transportation throughout the city is always $2.50. In order to get to the Blue Mountains, catch a train at Central Station headed to Katumba.  Once you arrive jump on the 186 bus up the mountains. There are tons of hiking trails. I hopped on one close to the main lookout point. It was an easy but beautiful hike. Tons of lookout points along the way and a beautiful waterfall.




The third day I headed to Cognee Beach. I attempted to do the Congee to Bondi walk, a very famous beach walk but ended up being too tired from the day before. What parts I did walk were beautiful and would highly recommend it. Along the way, there's the Bondi Iceberg pool with a cool view that you can swim in for $6.50.
The final day I hit up all the tourist spots. I took the ferry to Manly Beach and had an excellent view of the Sydney Bridge and Opera House along the way. Manly reminded me of a small beach town. After I rode the ferry back, I explored the outside of the Opera House. Later that night I jumped on an overnight bus to Byron Bay.



Byron Bay

I arrived in Byron Bay early in the morning, through a booking mistake I only had about two and a half days there. I decided to stay at an Airbnb this time, I desperately needed a break from hostel life. The Airbnb I booked was in Suffolk Park. It’s about a 10-minute drive from Byron Bay. There is a bus there but it doesn’t run often. Since the public transit isn’t good and an uber is around $15 I would recommend staying in Byron Bay and not on the outskirts.
The first day there I took it easy and lounged around the house. The second day I took an uber into Byron Bay and attempted to go to the beach. I say attempted because I only lasted about 10 minutes there. It was beyond windy and not enjoyable.
The next day I headed to the beach in Suffolk Park. I liked it better than the beach in Byron Bay. The only upside of Byron Bay is all the cute shops and restaurants.



Surfers Paradise

 I took a Greyhound from Byron around the middle of the day and got to Surfers in the evening. I didn’t have time to do anything that day nor did I want to. I was beyond tired.
The next day I hung out at the beach all day. In terms of beaches, it wasn’t my favorite. It was very crowded and filled with seagulls. The nightlife was big there so I wandered out for the first time on my trip. Tons of people were out and I ended up having a lot of fun. The next day it was cold and rainy. Besides the beach, there isn’t much to do there. Honestly, I was quite bored and was ready to leave. Surfers Paradise reminded me of a mix of Miami and Vegas. It wasn’t really a place I would go again nor would I recommend it.



Brisbane

The next stop was Brisbane. I only had about two days to spend there. I stayed at an Airbnb again. It was raining the first day and very quiet since most everything was closed for the Queen’s birthday.
I wandered to the Fortitude Valley shopping mall and had a great flat white at Campo’s Coffee.

The next day I set off to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. For about 23 USD I was able to pet koala’s, feed kangaroos, and look at other Australian wildlife. Since I arrived later in the day I wasn’t able to cuddle a koala. I recommend trying to get there as soon as it opens to make sure you have a chance to hold one.  


I think the hardest part about planning a trip is determining where to go and how much time to give yourself in a city. In hindsight, this is what I recommend for all the cities I briefly visited.
I personally only think you need about three days in Sydney. Sydney was just a busy and overpriced city. I’d spend about three days in Byron Bay if you like the beach and small shops. It had a very laid back vibe. I recommend not even stopping in Surfer’s Paradise unless you’re looking for a touristy Miami type of place. Through a situation outside of my control, I did not have much time in Brisbane. It was a smaller city, reminiscent of Milwaukee. I would say the city had a very up and coming vibe to it.  If I could go back I would have given myself more time there, maybe around three whole days.
I’m glad I got to experience what I did and I hope my experiences help you plan your Australia trip better!